• DVM360_Conference_Charlotte,NC_banner
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Conference Coverage
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Politics
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Hospital Design
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Conference Listing
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
CE Requirements by State
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Clients with a laundry list

March 1, 2006

Some clients view an office visit as an opportunity to catch up on an assortment of neglected pet health problems. Use these techniques to stay on topic and on schedule.

By Bob Levoy

Long lists of concerns and questions lead to extended office visits. These unplanned, long office visits seriously limit your ability to stay on schedule. If repeated throughout the day, they can create major delays, increasing your stress level and your team members' frustration and inconveniencing and annoying those clients who are kept waiting. What's more, by graciously accommodating such clients, you encourage them to bring similar lists on future visits.

You can't always prevent clients from bringing in a super-long list of questions and topics they'd like to discuss, but you can lessen the frequency of such visits. Try these solutions:

Advertisement

• Charge for an extended visit. Many clients will gladly pay a greater amount—especially if they're aware that office visit fees vary according to the time involved. If clients object to the fee when they initially learn about it, the receptionist can waive it as a courtesy—but let the client know that he or she will be charged for extended visits in the future.

• Tell the client that you can't adequately deal with so many issues in one 15- or 20-minute visit. Explain that you do care about addressing each of his or her concerns but that today's scheduled visit doesn't allow for that.

• Ask the client what he or she sees as the pet's most pressing health issues. At the top of a patient admission form used by the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine, Medical Teaching Hospital, it says: “In order of decreasing importance to you, list the reasons, symptoms, or services desired for today's visit.”

• Keep the client focused on the primary reason(s) for the visit. For instance, you might say, “These other issues are important, and we'll get to them, just not right now.” Use good judgment. Be resolute without being mean or confrontational.

Veterinary Economics Editorial Advisory Board member Bob Levoy is a seminar speaker based in Roslyn, N.Y., who focuses on profitability and practice growth, and the author of 101 Secrets of a High-Performance Veterinary Practice (Veterinary Medicine Publishing Co., 1996).

Related Content:

AssociatesRoles
Viticus group seeks applications for veterinary boot camp scholarship
Viticus group seeks applications for veterinary boot camp scholarship
CE: Why tapeworms matter
CE: Why tapeworms matter
3 tips for selling your practice
3 tips for selling your practice

Advertisement

Latest News

An update on copper concerns in pet foods

Dental hacks to make every case more manageable

Q&A with a keynote: Walter Brown, RVTg, VTS, ECC

News wrap-up: This week’s headlines, plus dvm360® launches its first CE podcast

View More Latest News
Advertisement